Eat Your Heart Out...

I do my best to make this not a boring diary of what goes on in my life. There are plenty of other blogs out there you can read if that's what you are looking for. However, yesterday was a pretty cool experience that I feel is worth detailing. Perhaps it will inspire some of you to do something similar...especially if you never knew you could.

So, for those of you that don't know, yesterday (the 13th) was our 6 month wedding anniversary. Yes, I remembered (Schnoozle did not, but I will let it slide since she had just gotten back from a week in India) and yes I realize that it's pretty gay that I remembered. Thanks to all my co-workers for reminding of that. So, I picked up Schnoozle from the airport at 6pm. She'd been flying for about 24 hours. We got home, she finally got comfy on the couch when I informed her that it was time to go out to dinner. Here's how that conversation went...

JewBoy: Dinner time.

Schnoozle: No way, I am too tired and don't feel well.

JewBoy: I'm sure you are. Ok, let's go to dinner.

Schnoozle: There's no way I am going anywhere, I'm beat.

JewBoy: Well, that's kind of the thing, I'm not asking, I'm telling. We're going.

Schnoozle: You're out of your mind.

JewBoy: I may have planned something that we have to go to.

Schnoozle: Why would you plan something on the day I got back from India?

JewBoy: Because I didn't know you were going to India when I planned it and it's too late to cancel. We're going....suck it up.

This continued for a few more minutes until I explained to Schnoozle that it was in fact our 6 month anniversary and I had made very special reservations that we really couldn't get out of. What were they? Well, a great little restaurant here called Heidi's has a new thing called a chef's table. Basically, you get to sit at a private table in the prep area of the kitchen and the executive chef serves you an 8 course tasting menu of very special ingredients, accompanied by perfectly paired wines. Being the foodies that we are, I thought it would be perfect. Schnoozle having to go to India however, was not. To say the least, she was not pleased about having to get dressed and go out...

Finally she agreed to go and this is what we had for an incredible dinner... (The picture quality is a little crappy since they were taken with my phone and the lighting was weird)


1st Course: Veal Carpaccio with an oyster fritter, served with a kim-chi mayo. (Paired with a Cava, Montsarra, Brut, Penedes)



2nd Course: Cucumber, beet and endive salad with beet puree, beet powder and a soy vinaigrette. (Paired with a Riesling, Mittnacht-Klack, Alsace 2002)




3rd Course: Winter greens with shaved foi gras, crispy potato sticks, chives and a pistachio oil dressing.



4th Course: Homemade papardelle pasta with fresh black truffles, in a butter sauce. This was then drizzled with Armando Manni Olive Oil. This is no normal olive oil, there are only 9 restaurants in the US that are allowed to purchase this oil from the maker and I got to eat it. Wow! (Paired with a Pinot Noir, Domaine Michel Noëllat et Fils, Burgundy 2003)




5th Course: Steamed Salmon with crab salad, peruvian purple mashed potatoes, passion fruit sauce, sage foam and cayenne powder. (Paired with a Cabernet-Tempranillo, Vega Sindoa, Navarra 2006)



6th Course: Braised Lamb with star anise and soy sauce, on a bed of wild rice cabbage salad and topped with puffed rice.



7th Course: Dessert Tri0- Homemade Chocolate sorbet on a flourless chocolate cake. Sweet potato benaise with a reduced maple syrup cream sauce. Red wine poached pear with fresh creme englaise. (Paired with a Madiera, New York Malmsey, Rare Wine Company)



8th Course- Belgian Endive, pineapple and chive salad with a lemon olive oil dressing, served with super fancy stilton bleu cheese mixed with port wine. I'm not gonna lie, I can't handle bleu cheese, it's way too strong for me, but Schnoozle said it was good.



So yeah, that was our dinner. We felt like we were judges on Iron Chef. Needless to say, Schnoozle got over having to go out and I scored some serious Hubby Points.